Education used to earn or maintain clerk certification falls into two categories: Core Education and Approved External Education.
Core Education
Core Education includes programs sponsored by:
- Texas Municipal Courts Education Center (TMCEC)
- Texas Court Clerks Association (TCCA)
- Texas Municipal Courts Association (TMCA)
At least 50% of the education hours required to earn or maintain certification must generally be completed through Core Education.
Core Education may be delivered live (in-person or synchronous virtual) or on-demand (recorded or asynchronous), subject to applicable on-demand limitations.
Approved External Education
The remaining required education hours may be completed through Approved External Education. Approved External Education must be:
- From an approved provider;
- Relevant to municipal court jurisdiction or court administration; and
- Live instruction, either in-person or live, synchronous online.
Recorded or asynchronous education from Approved External Education providers does not qualify for certification credit.
Before attending a program from an Approved External Education provider, participants are encouraged to submit an agenda to TMCEC at certification@tmcec.com for approval. TMCEC will determine the number of approved hours. Agendas may be submitted after attendance, but approval will depend on the course’s relevance and compliance with certification requirements.
Approved External Education Providers
- Texas A&M Transportation Institute’s Center for Alcohol and Drug Education Studies
- Texas Association for Court Administration (TACA)
- Texas Municipal Courts Association (TMCA)
- Judicial Branch Certification Commission (JBCC) Approved Training for Court Interpreters
- Coalition of American Court Collectors (CACC)
- Governmental Collectors Association of Texas (GCAT)
- Institute for Court Management (ICM)
- National Association of Court Managers (NACM)
- National Center for State Courts (NCSC)
- Teen Court Association of Texas (TCAT)
- Texas Justice Court Training Center (TJCTC)
- Texas Municipal League (TML)
- Texas State Library (TSL)
- Tyler Technologies
Requests for approval of education from providers not on the approved list should be sent to TMCEC at certification@tmcec.com. TMCEC will forward requests to the Municipal Courts Education Committee for review. Because this process may take time and approval is not guaranteed, participants are encouraged to request approval before attending.